St. Catherine University Athletics

ST. PAUL, MINN. – The calendar has finally turned, and for the St. Catherine University tennis team, April showers did not just bring May flowers.  The month of April also brought the Wildcats their sixth consecutive qualification for the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) postseason tournament. St. Kate's playoff journey begins today at 3:30 p.m. at St. Kate's outdoor tennis courts when the No. 6 Wildcats host the No. 3 University of St. Thomas.

Here are the five facts to know before this afternoon's playoff match:

6 – This will be the sixth consecutive season where the Wildcats have appeared in the MIAC playoffs. St. Kate's has not missed a conference tournament since 2010, when they qualified for the postseason for the first time in four years.

8 – The Wildcats needed to win their last match at the College of Saint Benedict in order to clinch the No. 6 seed in the playoffs. St. Kate's defeated the Blazers in dominating fashion, sweeping singles play and dropping one match in doubles to win the dual 8-1.

 2014 – The Wildcats last playoff victory came in 2014, when they won their opening round playoff match against St. Olaf College by a score of 5-4. St. Kate's unfortunately fell in the next round to Carleton College.

2013 – The last time the Wildcats and Tommies met in the conference tournament was in 2013. St. Kate's won the MIAC regular season title and earned a first round bye that season after going undefeated in conference play that season. Unfortunately, the Wildcats lost to St. Thomas 5-3 in the second round.

1 – The Wildcats and Tommies met earlier this year on March 13. St. Kate's fought for every point during the three-plus hour long match, but fell 9-0 to St. Thomas.